UAE using role as Cop28 host to lobby on its climate reputation

Gulf petrostate hired PR firms to stress its part in next year's climate summit before this year's had begun

The United Arab Emirates has been using its role as the host of next year's UN climate conference to launder its international reputation, long before this year's event - Cop27 in Sharm el-Sheikh - began.

The Emirates, which will host Cop28 in November 2023, hired public relations and lobbying agencies specifically to promote its role as the future host before this year's conference had began, an unusual move that exceeded the promotional efforts of past host nations and suggests an increased Emirati role in this year's Cop27 conference.